Katzenberg's venture raises $1 bln for mobile video service

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Aug 7 (Reuters) - WndrCo, a venture co-founded by former Disney executive Jeffrey Katzenberg, said on Tuesday it raised $1 billion from several media and financial companies for a mobile-based video service.

The platform, with a working title of “NewTV”, will be led by Meg Whitman, former chief executive officer of Hewlett-Packard, while Katzenberg will be the chairman.

WndrCo, founded in 2017, said NewTV plans to make Hollywood-style, short-form videos for mobile use.

“With NewTV, we’ll give consumers a user-friendly platform, built for mobile, that delivers the best stories, created by the world’s top talent, allowing users to make the most of every moment of their day,” said Whitman.

The capital raise includes investments by major Hollywood studios such as 21st Century Fox, Disney and Viacom.

China’s Alibaba, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Madrone Capital have also invested in the company.

“It is exciting to see Hollywood embracing this new technology distribution platform built for the way we watch today,” Katzenberg said. (Reporting by Supantha Mukherjee in Bengaluru Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)